About Yolanda

Thanks for checking out my about page and wanting to know more about me and my work!

My Business Life

For last 25 years I’ve been a business owner/entrepreneur.

My father, brother, and I started our custom commercial millwork company in a small, cramped warehouse with one prospective project. We bid on the project, a DoubleTree Hotel remodel of public spaces. We were competing with lots of other millwork companies but we won the bid and we were off to the races.

When I become CEO of my family’s business at 25, I was green! I had to learn a lot and I had to do it fast. Learning while doing is one of the critical pieces of being an entrepreneur.

After 8 years of building and growing the family business, I decided I wanted to do more. So, I started an automotive service business specializing in Porsche vehicles.

My business partner was an accomplished technician so just six months after 9/11, we opened our service and repair ’boutique’. It was a tough start, like most businesses, but the economic mindset at the time made it that much more difficult. Our friends and family were convinced we were crazy and that we’d fail.

We had no client list. But with tenacity and perseverance I set out to build our customer base, one Porsche owner at a time.

We quickly became the “go to” place for solving problems and fixing vehicles no one else wanted to fix or, in some cases, could fix.

In both the family business and the automotive business, no advertising dollars were ever spent. Both businesses relied solely on reputation and referrals to build success. We catered to customer needs and provided above-board customer service… it paid off.

In 2014, after 11 years, I sold my interest in the automotive business and moved into the next chapter of my work. I was still involved in the family business but before I could decide my next chapter, I was diagnosed with stage III cancer.

While I went through a couple of major surgeries and chemotherapy, I decided the best course of action was to find work I could do at home without a structured schedule. At the time, coding was big, there simply weren’t enough computer coders to go around. I had dabbled in website building before and now it seemed like the perfect time to do more. As I went through treatment, I spent my time learning html, css, javascript, WordPress, and more! As soon as treatment ended and I started to feel well enough, I began marketing and getting clients!

It turned out to be the perfect solution – I could work when I felt well enough even if that was at midnight and I didn’t need to go out to meet clients while I grew my hair back. Along the way, I decided that what I really wanted to do was help small businesses owners. As I built websites for small business, I was often engaged in conversation about their businesses and realized they needed help.

Still, the work didn’t feel the same to me anymore… mortality will do that to you.

That’s when I knew that my work needed to be one of service to others. I wanted to help other people find success in their businesses. Armed with everything I had seen and done, I knew I could help people solve problems faster and avoid the mistakes and pitfalls I’d navigated.

I’ve been honored to have spent the last few years working with community members, small business owners, student entrepreneurs and startups. Whether working with student startups at Arizona State University or student entrepreneurs at the community college or even community entrepreneurs at the local library, I’ve helped entrepreneurs win grants, win funding, move the needle in their businesses, get more clients, get laser-focused on strategy and outcomes, and be more efficient and profitable. I love every minute of making things happen for them!

Now, I get to spend time teaching at Glendale Community College, one of our local community colleges, helping students learn more about small business.

I hope that I can help you move the needle in your business as well!